Ethnological Mask Collection

MEXICAN BAT MASK

Dates: Mid 20th century, maker unknown.
Material: Painted wood.
Catalog No.: 79-135-1092

Mexican mask makers carved a variety of different types of masks for various fiestas, dances and ceremonies. More recently, they have been made expressly for sale. This bat-face mask came from Xatalitlan, Guerrero, and is one of a male-female pair. Technologically, it belongs within a "colonial workshop" tradition of detailed carving and painting on a gesso ground.